[bruce88]

PRINCETON — Hundreds of protestors rallied against the Dalai Lama during his visit to Princeton University on Tuesday, holding signs alleging religious discrimination and human rights abuses.

"We're standing up for our rights and those people's rights, and we're asking him to enter into dialogue and stop this discrimination," said Nicholas Pitts, spokesman for the International Shugden Community, the group that organized the demonstrations.

The 14th Dalai Lama spoke in Princeton University's Jadwin Gymnasium Tuesday morning to illustrate the importance of developing compassion, kindness and intellect in an academic environment. The Dalai Lama's visit continued this afternoon with another talk before students and faculty.

Shortly after this morning speech, members of the International Shugden Community marched through Princeton's campus and then protested on the corner of Nassau and Witherspoon streets, chanting "False Dalai Lama, Stop Lying."

"We're going to continue to protest and raise awareness," Pitts said during the demonstration. "This is the center of Princeton town so people will see us. It's just raising awareness and hopefully creating some pressure on him to respond to the issue in a meaningful way."

The protestors claimed the Dalai Lama banned a 400-year-old mainstream religious tradition of praying to the Buddhist Deity Dorje Shugden.

Pitts said many signs refusing entry and services to people of Shugden faith have appeared in Tibeten store windows, restaurants and medical centers.

"Because he is such a powerful political leader and famous speaker we have no other method to ask him to stop this suffering other than to demonstrate against him — to publicly raise our voices — requesting him to change his ways and stop the discrimination," said Len Foley, a spokesman for the International Shugden Community.

Another group, the Tibetan Community of New York and New Jersey, came to welcome the Dalai Lama and denounce the claims of the International Shugden Community in a counter demonstation.

"We came here to welcome, to greet, his holiness the Dalai Lama. They are here to protest. We are not," said Tenzin Sangpho, a board member of the Tibetan Community.

Pitts said the International Shugden Community's goal is not to ask that the Dalai Lama like or practice Dorje Shugden, but that religious freedom should apply to everyone.

"If they really want to protect the Dalai Lama's reputation and image, then they need to stop the segregation. It's the segregation that is causing the damage, it's not us," Pitts said. "The fact that we are highlighting something that's very wrong that's going on — that's the problem. The problem is the segregation."

Pitts said the march through campus was successful in getting the International Shugden Community's message across.

"The march went great. It felt very symbolic, very powerful," he said.